Recent year, an optical fiber connector which is provided with a ferule in which an optical fiber is inserted in a center of the ferule and a connecting structure which is disposed in a tip section of the ferule is proposed for an optical fiber connector which can be attached to the tip section of the optical fiber easily.
In such a case, the connecting structure is provided with a two-divided connecting elements which are formed by assembling two divided halves and a clamping spring which engages to the outside of the connecting element so as to compress both of the divided halves in its attaching direction such that one of the divided halves is divided into two pieces such as a main clamp and a substitute clamp and a groove is formed for an alignment on a attaching surface with the other one of the divided halves.
Consequently, in order to attach an optical fiber connector which has an above explained structure to a tip of an optical fiber, for example, an optical fiber connecting tool which has a pair of open/close member is used so as to insert both of the open/close members between the main clamp and the other divided half, and between the substitute clamp and the other divided halve. The clamping condition by both of the clamps is released by releasing the main clamp and the substitute clamp. The tip section of the newly installed optical fiber is inserted between the main clamp and the other divided halve via the substitute clamp; thus, the tip of the newly installed optical is butt-connected to the tip of the pre-installed optical fiber in an inside of the main clamp in detail.
Consequently, both of the open/close members of the optical fiber connecting tool is extracted from between the main clamp and the other divided half and from between the substitute clamp and the other divided half simultaneously under such a condition. The pre-installed optical fiber and the newly installed optical fiber are clamped under a butt-connected condition by the main clamp; thus, a section of the newly installed optical fiber which is coated is clamped by the substitute clamp.
By doing this, it is possible to attach the optical fiber connector to the tip section of the newly installed optical fiber such that the pre-installed optical fiber near the optical fiber connector and the newly installed optical fiber are maintained under a butt-connected condition.
However, in the above explained optical fiber connecting tool, in a case in which the tip section of both of the optical fibers is deformed by a butt-connecting force of the newly installed optical fiber against the pre-installed optical fiber near the optical fiber connector, both of the optical fibers are clamped under such a deformed condition; thus, there are problems such as an increase in a loss due to a bent optical fiber and a damage of the tip of the optical fiber which is caused by a concentrated stress to the tip section of the both of the deformed optical fibers; therefore, these problems may cause a defect connection.